Jackie Speier is doing a great job trying to help Bay Area homeowners. In her words, “I’ve drafted an amendment so that rather than being limited to whether the loan was conforming at time of origination, it will be based on (whether it’s conforming at) the time of (modification), which will take the limit up to $729,750 in high-cost areas. This should make more people in the Bay Area eligible.”

The Chronicle article states that Pelosi supports the bill and it is expected to pass the House. Some much needed relief!

The buying opportunities abound in San Francisco and condo shopping sprees are on the rise! This month, a tour of 40 executives from China will be ascending San Francisco, Boston, New York and Los Angeles in search of a sweet deal. I’d bet this is the first of many trips. Is this the sign of things to come? Does this mean we are at the bottom and the market is about to move up?

Avram Goldman, CEO of Pacific Union, posts recently that things are getting better all the time. I still hear about multiple offers on well priced homes. That is the key, a realistic seller and a motivated buyer. This market will flesh them out.

Buyers out there, keep looking seriously. We won’t be in this market forever.

Check out this Mediterrean Villa at 299 Santa Paula! A gorgeous 5Br, 5.5BA, 4 car garage home listed for $5,900,000! This is one of the more stunning homes in San Francisco. You gotta see it!

521 Hill Street

Let’s move to

Noe Valley….521 Hill Street is a well priced 3BR, 2BA Marina style home located on a very desirable block in Noe Valley. It comes with a lovely south facing yard…great light! At $1,399,000 this is a great deal.

Alan P. Mark of the Mark Company will be speaking to the South Beach Rincon Hill Mission Bay Neighborhood Association about how the South Beach Mission Bay neighborhood has changed, how the economy has affected the various developments/projects in the area including the Infinity, and about the launch of the second Infinity Tower.

When: Monday, February 9th 6-7PM. Please email me if you are interested in attending!

Check out this Gold Coast home located at 2712 Broadway at Divisadero! This is a lovely 7BR, 5BA home is listed for $7,750,000. It has spectacular views, grand scale, beautiful rooms, elevator, garden, 2 car parking. Best of all it was reduced from $9,495,000. This is a stellar home.

Another home on the list this week is 3355 Pacific @ Walnut. This home is located on the Presidio ‘wall’, a very desirable location. This has stellar views of the Golden Gate Bridge and the Bay, gorgeous rooms for entertaining, 6BR, 7.75 BA, 2 car garage, elevator – beautiful! How high will this one go? It is listed for $8,900,000.

The next impressive home is in the Marina at 2646 Chestnut @ Lyon. Timeless updates, 3BR, 2.5BA, FIVE car garage! You can enjoy views of Alcatraz and the Golden Gate Bridge from the top floor of this 3 story home. Listed for $2,700,000.

Here is some great news! The renewable energy industry grew 3 times as fast as the US economy according to a recent article in Living Green Magazine. This translates to an estimated 37M green collar jobs by 2030 with the hot sectors being solar thermal, photovoltaic, biodiesel, and ethanol.

Interesting to note, Germany is way ahead of the US in terms of its renewable energy jobs. It also produces more….half of the wind rotors and one-thrid of the solar panels in the world. The US runs the risk of losing valuable ground if it does not invest in renewable energy. Take a read through the article…form your own opinion!